Also discussed here: Traffic emissions may pollute one in three Canadian homes (ScienceDaily, Apr. 21, 2015)
Today we review research into exposure to ultra-fine particles, especially those emitted by old vehicles. One third of all Canadians and half of the population of Toronto are exposed to health risks because they live within 250 m of a major roadway. 21,000 Canadians die prematurely each year because of air pollution and a large part of these deaths result from living too close to major roadways. Policy changes at the provincial and federal levels are needed to target older more polluting cars, as well as at the municipal level, to zoning plans to locate buildings and homes that house those most vulnerable from being close to traffic-related pollution – such as day cares, seniors residences, hospitals and schools.
Key Quotes:
“One in three Canadians, and half of all Torontonians, lives within 250 meters of at least one major roadway”
"We used to think that living near a major road meant that you lived near a lot of air pollution…But what we're finding is that it's not that simple, someone living right on a major road in the suburbs may not be exposed to as much pollution as someone living downtown on a side street near many major roads."
"It used to be that we measured air quality on a regional or city scale…But now we're starting to understand that we need to measure air quality on a more micro scale, especially around major roadways."
“The Canadian Medical Association attributes 21,000 premature deaths each year in Canada to air pollution.”
"The ultrafine particles are particularly troubling…Because they are over 1000 times smaller than the width of a human hair, they have a greater ability to penetrate deeper within the lung and travel in the body."
"The most surprising thing we found was how broad the range of emissions was…As we looked at the exhaust coming out of individual vehicles, we saw so many variations. How you drive, hard acceleration, age of the vehicle, how the car is maintained--these are things we can influence that can all have an effect on pollution."
“ their research may someday lead to policy changes that could help better target the small number of vehicles that pollute the most, as well as to better decide where to build schools, hospitals, daycares, seniors residences and other structures to protect people who are especially vulnerable to air pollution.”
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